Carragher names one star ‘poor’ in Man Utd draw for showing too much ‘arrogance’

Liverpool's surprise 2-2 draw against Manchester United had many criticizing Trent Alexander-Arnold, but Jamie Carragher has highlighted another Reds star who perhaps felt they could have done more.

The visitors left Anfield with a point few predicted they could earn, amid a torrid run of form that included four defeats in all competitions in the run-in.

Lisandro Martinez opened the scoring after 52 minutes, before a Cody Gakpo equalizer seven minutes later and a Mohamed Salah penalty after 70 minutes had given Arne Slot's side a comeback victory.

But just as he did against Manchester City, Amad Diallo came up with the goods for Ruben Amorim and Co, and United came away with a well-deserved point that could well have been three, but a miss from Harry Maguire later.

Liverpool were easily the best team in the country – and perhaps in Europe this season – but Reds legend Carragher believes there was one player who seemed to come into the game with too much 'arrogance'.

“I thought Curtis Jones was bad and the only negative thing about Curtis Jones as a player when he's not playing well is that he holds the ball too much,” Carragher said on The Gary Neville Podcast.

'He has that football arrogance that you want, but he is at his best when he plays two-touch, he moves quickly and he presses.

'He's not a superstar when it comes to beating players and clever passing, he just pushes it forward quickly and presses, he's energetic.

'As soon as he holds the ball for half a second too much, it doesn't become football arrogance, but just arrogance.

“He lost the ball early and I thought it was going to be one of those Curtis days, but overall he was fantastic.”

It has been something of a breakthrough campaign for Jones this season under Slot, who has given the 23-year-old both confidence and plenty of game time this season.

Previously, like Ryan Gravenberch, he struggled to break into the starting line-up but has now become a regular for the new Reds boss.

However, starting the match with an ill Dominik Szoboszlai, Jones only managed 37 touches in an hour as a central attacking midfielder, highlighting his inability to get creatively involved in the game.

He also lost two of his four games away, losing possession six times without making key passes or completing dribbles.

However, Jones was not the only one to receive criticism, with Alexander-Arnold accused of alleged 'schoolboy' defense by former United skipper Roy Keane.

The defender had a difficult first 45 minutes, in which he was passed with ease several times.

Diogo Dalot first went past Alexander-Arnold before delivering a cross to Amad Diallo, who failed to capitalize.

The England international then kept Rasmus Hojlund offside after a ball over the top, with the United striker denied by Alisson.

“It's too easy, just a few balls over the top,” Keane told Sky Sports. “Trent defends it like it's a schoolboy thing. “If he's talking about going to Real Madrid, he's going to Tranmere Rovers next.”

League Two Tranmere then hilariously responded to X, posting: 'Trent to Tranmere, Roy? No, I'm fine, thanks.'

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *